August Awesomeness

 I'm not just a fan of alliteration (though I am that) August really was Awesome!

I found myself waking up each day wondering how I could possibly slow this month down.  After being out of school since March it suddenly seemed too soon to think about going back. 

Usually, during the first week of August, we celebrate our local Heritage Days with week-long festivities, fireworks, rodeos, and a parade.  Due to COVID, the celebrations had to be a little more individualized and...creative.  Sam and Jess entered the towns rock painting competition.  Jessica painted Nacho Libre and Sam (who spent the month obsessively watching the office) painting "Prison Mike" on his rock. 

Proud mom right here as I considered their submissions.  haha

The backyard became one of my "Happy Places" this summer and I was reminded of how nice it is to be able to invest in a yard of our own.  And boy have we!  We spent the summer tearing out, building, digging, and planting.  I'm so excited about the direction this yard is going.  And we got to once again enjoy chard, beet greens, and all the other goodness that comes from having a garden.  Bliss!

 John has become a real fan of river fishing, often choosing to end a summer day by walking up and down the Belly or St. Mary River for a stretch. He became proficient at finding the best spots and we tried our best to keep up as he hopped from one fishing hole to the next. 

 Fishing has definitely become John's numero uno!

Throughout this COVID pandemic, Grandpa has continued to join us each day for dinner as well as each Sunday for our homemade Sunday service.  We have loved having him join us, though I have worried incessantly about how we can keep him safe.  Do we start taking him meals?  Get his groceries and run his errands for him?  Not wanting to be completely shut in, Gramps insisted on still joining us, but he did ask for some masks and sanitizer to keep in his vehicle to use when grocery shopping.  We aren't convinced of the usefulness of masks, but it has since become required at our local grocery store and we are all trying.  

 

It was a sad realization for us this summer to consider the fact that we have gone a whole year without seeing most of John's family.  Since being married, there hasn't been a summer when John's siblings haven't gathered for a week or two.  If there wasn't a planned reunion, there would always be a couple of families who would come to Canada or an occasion that would take us down to the states - but that could not be the case this year and we missed them.  Our kids often said, "It just doesn't feel like summer without seeing everyone."

Luckily - Rachel and her clan joined us often and those visits quickly became a highlight for us.  Evenings in Waterton are much more adventurous when younger cousins join us!  haha

Jessica and Nate even spent a few days up in Calgary!

They came home from that raving about beaches, barbeques, yummy food, and all the fun things there are to do in the city! (#spoiled)

Towards the end of summer, we were finally able to gather with all of my siblings.  It wasn't COVID that kept us apart all summer, but rather everyone's work schedules.  With four of the older kids working in Waterton, and the Okotoks cousins working their jobs, it took a little bit of planning to make this day happen, but I'm so glad it did!

We all gathered at a Willow Creek Provincial Park (a childhood favorite) and spent the afternoon and evening playing in the water, visiting, eating, and catching up.  I have nieces coming and going from missions, moving away to go to school, and starting adventures of their own.  It is so exciting to see!

Being around my siblings and their kids always makes me so happy.  

Just days after that get-together, Jewel took the local cousins out to Walley's beach one day (John and I both had to work) and they came back raving about the fun that they had swimming, paddleboarding, and more.  These cousins really can't get enough of each other!

John and I returned to work at the end of August.  

Suffice it to say, things are going to look a little different at school this year. 

A couple of us EAs (Educational Assistants) went hiking in Waterton in between our two workdays.  It felt nice to visit with these girls again and made me feel a little more excited about returning to work.

On the last day of August, John and I went on a date.  That in and of itself is a fairly momentous occasion, but it also happened to be a remarkably beautiful evening.  We took our paddleboards (and fishing rods) and paddled further along Upper Waterton Lake, discovering a beautiful rocky beach (every rock was perfect for skipping) and a fun little dock which we were able to fish from and have all to ourselves.  

That's all I can recall from an absolute blur of a month. 

It was definitely full of some pretty awesome moments.